FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS - Get Free Report) saw a significant drop in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,410,000 shares, a drop of 13.5% from the February 28th total of 1,630,000 shares. Currently, 3.7% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 306,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.6 days.

Insider Activity

In other FactSet Research Systems news, CAO Gregory T. Moskoff sold 363 shares of FactSet Research Systems stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $433.73, for a total transaction of $157,443.99. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 44 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,084.12. The trade was a 89.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On FactSet Research Systems

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC purchased a new position in FactSet Research Systems during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 31.1% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 118 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 19.1% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 137 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 5,200.0% in the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 159 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Menard Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems during the fourth quarter worth $91,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.24% of the company's stock.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $469.00 to $493.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded FactSet Research Systems from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and cut their target price for the stock from $450.00 to $402.00 in a research report on Friday, March 21st. UBS Group lowered their price target on FactSet Research Systems from $525.00 to $480.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $503.00 price objective on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $498.00 to $466.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, FactSet Research Systems presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $436.27.

FactSet Research Systems Trading Down 2.5 %

FDS stock traded down $10.55 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $405.64. 554,568 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 283,942. FactSet Research Systems has a 52-week low of $391.84 and a 52-week high of $499.87. The stock's fifty day moving average is $451.88 and its 200-day moving average is $464.94. The company has a market cap of $15.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 20th. The business services provider reported $4.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.17 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $570.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $570.65 million. FactSet Research Systems had a net margin of 24.16% and a return on equity of 33.92%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.22 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that FactSet Research Systems will post 17.21 earnings per share for the current year.

FactSet Research Systems Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.03%. FactSet Research Systems's payout ratio is presently 29.59%.

FactSet Research Systems Company Profile

FactSet Research Systems Inc, a financial data company, provides integrated financial information and analytical applications to the investment community in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company delivers insight and information through the workflow solutions of research, analytics and trading, content and technology solutions, and wealth.